There is a horrible story in the Telegraph on the inquest of a 14 year old girl. Here is the sub-title of the story –
Shannon Powell, a paramedic, refused to carry a dying 14-year-old girl from a cross-country race course because of health and safety fears for herself, a coroner heard.[1]
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The biggest problem with the story might be that a paramedic refused to carry a patient, or refused to treat a patient.
The problem is that the story is so badly written that there is no way to tell what really happened. For example –
Shannon Powell is probably not the name of the paramedic. Other parts of the story claim that Shannon Powell is the name of the dead little girl. Which is it? We don’t know. Maybe they are both named Shannon Powell, but that kind of coincidence ought to have been mentioned by the reporter.
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The life-saver declined to take part in the “chaotic” rescue mission to save Shannon Powell, saying she was worried about her own back, a witness told the inquest.[1]
That seems bad, but the names have changed. What was “chaotic” about the rescue mission? What kind of back problems does the life-saver have? What is it about this patient – apparently a 14 year old runner, probably not a big patient – that is a danger to the life-saver, that is not a danger on every other call. Won’t most of those calls be for much bigger patients?
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Shannon had collapsed in the mud and was foaming at the mouth in a violent fit during a cross-country run but, due to a series of gaffes, life-savers only reached her almost an hour later, the coroner heard.[1]
Was the death of the little girl due to one person, out of many people on scene, not carrying the patient, but not due to a delay in care of almost an hour?
What was the cause of death?
We don’t know, but this is an inquest. One of the purposes of an inquest is to determine the cause of death.
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Catherine Sheppard, a marshal, told the hearing that the response was so infuriating she almost attacked the rescue worker.[1]
This is someone who has her priorities so mixed up that she is considering attacking EMS. That would be a felony where I work. A lot of people become infuriated for a lot of reasons. Did Catherine Sheppard (assuming the reporter got the name right) not offer to help? Is it beneath her to help? Was there something unsafe about the scene that prevented the marshal from helping?
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“I believe that I walked away at that point. I really was very close to being either verbally or physically abusive to the LAS attendant.[1]
The marshal has responsibility for the children participating in the race, but becomes so upset that she runs away from her responsibilities? Again, this depends on the accuracy of the reporting.
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The helper, who is also a history teacher, told how she saw the teenage girl fall wide-eyed and rigid, to the floor.
However, rather than call 999 the assistant said she followed athletics’ club policy and told an organiser who sent a first-aider to the scene.[1]
A child having a possible seizure (a life threatening condition – she did die) and club policy is more important than the health life of the patient?
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It was only on their arrival, five minutes later, that she said she called ambulance personnel trained to keep Shannon alive.
However, paramedics only arrived at 12.50pm, almost an hour after Shannon collapsed, she believed.
The inquest in Barnet heard how gates at the park were locked and organisers assumed paramedics would have the keys.[1]
They lock the gates, but assume that the paramedics have the keys.
Is there any good reason not to send someone to the gate to make sure that EMS gets to the right place?
Any reason at all?
Did they send GPS coordinates to the ambulance?
Why think that everyone else knows where you are, just because you know where you are?
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There was also confusion about where the park was, which entrance they should use and where the teenager was lying freezing on the muddy track with Mrs Sheppard’s fleece over her, coroner Andrew Walker said.[1]
Mrs. Sheppard would not move the little girl off of the reportedly freezing ground, although she did put her fleece over her. An hour of freezing? Were they trying for therapeutic hypothermia?
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Maps of the Middlesex Cross Country Championships’ course contained errors delaying medical help as it was rushed to the scene where the talented youngster collapsed in a fit in Trent Parl, Enfield, north London.[1]
Yet, the headline is about the paramedic refusing to carry the little girl.
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Mrs Sheppard told how even as the two paramedics, one male one female, were led up to Shannon by another marshal they walked slowly behind the race assistant.[1]
EMS should never run, unless we are running away from something. Maybe Mrs. Sheppard should have called 999 earlier, if she thought time was important, and should have sent someone to guide EMS to their location, and should have moved the little girl off of the freezing ground. That is assuming that the information has been reported with any accuracy.
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“The paramedic at the time was saying ‘we can’t carry her because its health and safety and we might fall over’.
“They didn’t come up with any solution at all. Because of the time we had been there I think I can say this for all of us – we all looked at each other as if to say ‘**** health and safety’.”[1]
That according to first-aider Robbie Proctor. Also –
He said: “One of the stewards made a comment and said ‘how come it took you so long?’
“The comment that came out was ‘this is a low priority call’ or ‘a green call’. That was the male paramedic.”[1]
If the call was dispatched as low priority, maybe that is because the information given to the 999 dispatcher downplayed the seriousness of the little dead girl’s medical condition.
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The first-aider described how Shannon was being carried by six people from the course on a trolley bed when she sat bolt upright screaming.[1]
Carrying her required 6 people, but they expected the 2 paramedics to carry her by themselves. Was there more to the condition of the grounds than is being mentioned?
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He said: “The last time I put the trolley bed down – and I’m being very honest with the parents here because it haunts me – Shannon sat up and screamed ‘let me go’.”[1]
How many times did these 6 people have to put the trolley bed down and rest? Yet, they expected the 2 paramedics to carry the stretcher?
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He told how paramedics believed she was having a fit and gave her the painkiller diazepam when “everything seemed to go haywire.”[1]
Diazepam (Valium) is not a painkiller.
“everything seemed to go haywire.”
Is that supposed to mean that she was given the anti-seizure medicine diazepam because she was having a seizure? Or is it supposed to suggest that giving a seizure patient (fitting patient) anti-seizure medication is inappropriate according to the medical expertise of someone who leaves the patient on the freezing ground for an hour.
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The first-aider, who owns the company, Spectrum, brought in to provide medical help at the event, said the paramedics questioned his qualifications and began asking bystanders if they knew how to provide lifesaving CPR.[1]
The owner of the company that was contracted to provide the wonderful medical care (as reported in the article) to the dead girl is trying to put the blame on someone else.
The race marshal appears to be doing the same thing.
Am I a bit jaded in doubting their objectivity?
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Shannon was taken from Chase Farm Hospital, in Enfield, where she died of sudden death syndrome on January 18, this year.[1]
Was any CPR indicated at any time on scene or were the paramedics just giving Mr. Proctor a hard time? It is impossible to tell from the story.
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The article finishes with –
The inquest continues.[1]
I would love to see the full transcript of the inquest. This is so badly reported that I have no idea how much of what is written in the article is true. The reporter does not appear to have a clue about how to report a story.
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Footnotes:
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[1] Paramedic refused to carry dying girl over safety fears
Telegraph
1:50PM GMT 08 Dec 2011
Article
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